Heathkit cult

[joe]

Wow, what nostalgia and memories of my filrst rig a
Heathkit AT-1 6AG7 driving a 6L6 wilth a 5u4 rect.
There were three of us back in  Hayden, Colo. Wn0SJJ,
WN0UTN and my self WN0TUT
who bought the AT-1.  I can remembr how one of us
really had gobs of solder on the connections. And it still worked. And some
pritty good DX VK3, DU7SV,
W9NZZ working the Ve8s iln the high Artic. All worked
with that silngle xtal on  14100 khz.  Tthen bought a Viking Ranger, sold it
and then a DX100-B where I learned
vacuum tube troubleshooting. Then a NCX-3 and
finally the ultimate (Cadillac of radios) the Collins
KWM-2 back in 1971 and it still works and I have
three other KWM-2A, etc.

And you know somethilng, the last rig I sent to the
factory for repairs was the Viking Ranger back in 1958.

Remember :REAL RADIOS GLOW IN THE DARK AND CAN BE REPAIRED BY THE OWNER>

 Happy Hamming de Joe w0tut


----- Original Message -----
From: "Davies, Doug A FOR:EX" <Doug.Davies at GEMS3.GOV.BC.CA>
To: <HEATH at LISTSERV.TEMPE.GOV>
Sent: Friday, October 15, 2004 1:13 PM
Subject: Re: Heathkit cult


> >>Anyone tried to take an FT-1000MP apart lately? Jeez.
>
> Brian, W0DZ<<
>
> Further to this point, I recently spoke with a two-way technician here in
> town about this very subject.  He told me they really don't troubleshoot
> much any more.  He said the customer simply can't afford it.  He showed me
a
> computer interface that they use with one brand of commercial radios they
> sell and service.  It plugs into the radio and, with a few diagnostic
> routines, tells the "technician" what the problem is and which board to
> change out to fix the problem.  This fellow told me that at shop rates of
> $60.00/hour and up, the customer can't afford to have anyone troubleshoot
> their radios anymore.  And, with SMT becoming the norm, he says that more
> often than not, one ruins five parts trying to replace one. Ten minutes
with
> the computer and the radio is out the door.
>
> This guy is a relative oldtimer and he concurs with the assesment that new
> "technicians" coming out school now have limited basic skills when it
comes
> to actually working on radios. Things like proper soldering techniques and
> the correct way to assemble a coax connector have to be taught on the job.
> He still refuses to use crimp-on connectors, by the way <grin>.  So, I
think
> many of the posts are correct in that ham radio as many of us knew it is a
> dying hobby.  It's proceeding rapidly to a plug-and-play world.
>
> Doug  VA7DD
>
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